UNITED NATIONS - The United States has by far the largest number of publicly owned firearms in the world and is approaching the point where there is one gun for every American, according to the Small Arms Survey 2003 released Tuesday.

But in surprise findings, the survey found that Europeans are more heavily armed than commonly believed while there are far fewer small arms in Afghanistan (news - web sites) and sub-Saharan Africa than previously estimated.

According to the independent survey, the crackdown on terrorism after Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States "had little effect on the size of the global stockpile of 639 million known small arms."

The survey said its estimate of the global value of small arms production remains unchanged at about $7.4 billion — with the United States and Russia accounting for more than 70 percent of production. The estimate of the legal small arms trade — $4 billion a year — also remains the same, with the European Union (news - web sites) dominating the international export market.

America is now estimated to have between 238 million and 276 million firearms, compared with some 250 million legally owned guns, or 84 for every 100 people recorded in a July 2001 survey.

"By any measure the United States is the most armed country in the world," it said. "With roughly 83 to 96 guns per 100 people, the United States is approaching a statistical level of one gun per person."

The country with the second-highest gun ownership is Yemen, with between 33 and 50 firearms per 100 people, followed by Finland with 39 per 100, the new survey said.

"Contrary to the common assumption that Europeans are virtually unarmed, the 15 countries of the European Union have an estimated 84 million firearms. Of that 67 million (80 percent) are in civilian hands," the survey said. With a total population of 375 million people, this amounts to 17.4 guns for every 100 people.

The survey of global small arms was released on the second day of a weeklong U.N. meeting reviewing progress toward implementing a U.N. program adopted two years ago to combat small arms trafficking. More than 30 researchers contributed to the project, which is coordinated at the Graduate Institute of International Studies in Geneva and financed by a dozen Western governments.

Peter Batchelor, the survey's project director, said at a news conference that there are still "disappointingly low levels of transparency" about the global arms trade, with only about 20 countries providing annual export reports. Sixty countries are known to be engaged in the legal trade.

"Based on our research, it's clear that the value and the volume of the legal international trade has appeared to decline since the 1990s. This has been led by a dramatic fall in the trade of military weapons, and also certain categories of civilian firearms," he said.

Batchelor said the illicit trade is believed to be worth about $1 billion, or 20 percent of the legal trade.

While small-scale smuggling across borders continues, "the large-scale deals that seemed to be very prominent in the last decade seem to have declined somewhat," he said.

New research is leading to an increasingly balanced, though still incomplete, picture of the distribution of small arms and light weapons, the survey said.

Although it is has been widely reported that Afghanistan has at least 10 million small arms, the survey said, "careful analysis places the total between 500,000 and 1.5 million weapons."

It also said there probably are no more than 30 million firearms among civilians, insurgents and governments of the 44 countries of sub-Saharan Africa.

"This is enough guns to perpetuate fighting in many countries and raise the danger of criminal violence in many others, but it is not enough to render the situation totally beyond hope," the survey said.

If you enjoyed reading about "Nearly 1 Gun for Every American" here in TheHighRoad.org archive, you'll LOVE our community. Come join TheHighRoad.org today for the full version!

Standing Wolf

July 9, 2003, 07:45 PM

America is now estimated to have between 238 million and 276 million firearms, compared with some 250 million legally owned guns, or 84 for every 100 people recorded in a July 2001 survey.

Sorry! I guess I haven't been buying enough guns lately. I'll do better! I promise!

BowStreetRunner

July 9, 2003, 07:48 PM

hear that fienstien? come and get all of them!

Lone_Gunman

July 9, 2003, 08:26 PM

OK ...

What kind of wuss only owns one gun?

Come on America, get buying!

Hardtarget

July 9, 2003, 08:29 PM

It would be interesting to compare the type and caliber of firearms in different countries. I'm sure the USA would show a high % of guns like .22s and hunting shotguns. I wonder about some of the other countries...maybe we would see a higher % of those "evil black rifles"? maybe not. I would just like to see a breakdown of those numbers...but theres no way we'll ever see that kind of information.

Mark Tyson

July 9, 2003, 08:43 PM

I wonder what percentage of those guns belong to THR members.

BerettaNut92

July 9, 2003, 08:51 PM

"This is enough guns to perpetuate fighting in many countries and raise the danger of criminal violence in many others, but it is not enough to render the situation totally beyond hope," the survey said.

Like the murder of Nicole Brown and 9/11?

Sheslinger

July 10, 2003, 12:04 AM

I wonder if we could in fact somehow keep a counter where everyone on THR could anonymously add the number of their guns to see how our percentage looks.

Sheslinger

Jeff

July 10, 2003, 12:10 AM

I wonder what one gun Alan Dershowitz would like to own? Or Alan Alda? Or Ed Begley Jr.?

Anyone ask them yet? :D

45R

July 10, 2003, 12:20 AM

I am sure a few of our Anti-gun politicians are adding to those numbers as well. :)

CGofMP

July 10, 2003, 12:40 AM

"You cannot invade the mainland United States. There would be a rifle behind each blade of grass."
Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, 1941

"By any measure the United States is the most armed country in the world," it said. "With roughly 83 to 96 guns per 100 people, the United States is approaching a statistical level of one gun per person."

I know some whom have that many by their lonesome. :D

Preacherman

July 10, 2003, 01:27 AM

I reckon that the combined gun ownership of THR members more than makes up for the gun-deprived masses in Chicago, New York, etc... :D

shermacman

July 10, 2003, 08:43 AM

I love the 250 million gun figure. I think it is made up, imaginary. I have heard that same number for the last 30 years, ever since I passed my Rifle and Shotgun Merit Badge. Either no one in America has bought a single gun in the last third of a century or else the number is a lie. Anyone have a better source?

DWS1117

July 10, 2003, 08:51 AM

I am trying to do my part. Up to 3 now with more to come.

Monte Harrison

July 10, 2003, 09:10 AM

I just got my C&R license, so I will definitely add to the average in the coming months.

TallPine

July 10, 2003, 10:01 AM

250 million sounds about right for MT - what about the other 49 states ...?

:D

Wil Terry

July 10, 2003, 10:39 AM

IS PURE USDA HORSECRAP.
The figure would be lots closer to the truth at 6-700,000,000 guns in this country and hopefully growing by leaps and bounds!!!

tiberius

July 10, 2003, 10:44 AM

Only 1 gun per American? Obviously some of our fellow citizens aren't pulling their weight.:)

Dave R

July 10, 2003, 12:21 PM

Mr. Murbach brings up a good point.

Anyone know what ammunitions sales are per year in the USA? It would be interesting to see:

-How many rounds per year those gun owners are purchasing.
-See if that makes sense given the number of guns "they" say are out there.

Of course, the REAL heavy shooters are buying components, not ammo.

OF

July 10, 2003, 12:27 PM

"This is enough guns to perpetuate fighting in many countries and raise the danger of criminal violence in many others, but it is not enough to render the situation totally beyond hope," the survey said.If anyone had any doubt what the UN wants re: your guns. There it is. Guns cause fighting. :rolleyes: :cuss:

I'm with Terry. There are waaaaaaay more guns in this country than the man realizes.

- Gabe

RustyHammer

July 10, 2003, 02:48 PM

Doing my best to raise the average! Rusty

mcole

July 10, 2003, 03:03 PM

well, i'm trying to do my part. mcole

AZTOY

July 10, 2003, 03:11 PM

well, i'm trying to do my part.

Me too

Pick up the P-97 on Friday:D

Cosmoline

July 10, 2003, 03:20 PM

My guess would be the overwhelming majority of firearms, both in the US and abroad, fall into these categories:

.22 LR bolt action, many of them single shot

Single shot H&R style shotguns, break top.

.38 Special revolvers either by Colt or S&W or knockoffs

Various military surplus bolt action rifles

I would expect that even in the US, the more expensive centerfire hunting rifles and "assault" pattern rifles are only a very small percentage of the overall pie.

Makes you wonder what all the fuss is about, don't it? It reminds me of a great picture of UN officials in East Timor, standing over a pile of seized rebel weapons made up mostly of hand-made single shot shotguns. The blue helmets were carrying proper assault rifles, of course.

TallPine

July 10, 2003, 03:39 PM

You know, a fairly accurate number could be arrived at by using domestic firearm sales over the past 75 years, and then factoring in wearing out, casualty loss, destruction by law enforcement, etc... (sometime when I'm really bored I might look up these numbers and do a spreadsheet)

Guns last a looong time, and these companies haven't been making money by selling a couple dozen a year.

In the US at least, there are a large number of centerfire rifles, because everyone knows you need a different caliber for every different species of game that you might ever wish to hunt. :)

Wil Terry

July 10, 2003, 04:18 PM

The best I could come up with was 169,000,000 million rounds per day were being consumed. This did not include imported ammunition as none of those yahoos would give me the time of day. It did use the primer production numbers from the major primer manufacturers supplying the country's handloaders plus all of the 22LR ammunition made every year and other info now unretrieveable from the dustbins of my memory. The 22LR and the shotshells used up by trapshooters was a big part of all this.
I do remember sending Patsy Schroeder or one of those whinin' socialist ninnies this information and saying if the shooting sports were as deadly as those fools were implying the country would be wiped out in less than two days of shooting by all the gunners in the country at this rate of ammo usage.
CAN YOU BELIEVE IT? I NEVER GOT AN ANSWER IN RETURN...SIGH...
And so it goes...

OF

July 11, 2003, 02:40 PM

That there's a whole lot o' shootin'.

- Gabe

Kobun

July 11, 2003, 04:32 PM

169,000,000 million each DAY??? :confused: :uhoh:
That would be 33,800 rounds for each person in the WORLD each day.
Think those numbers need some going over again!

169.... a YEAR gives something like 1850 rounds for each American a year.

RustyHammer

July 11, 2003, 05:03 PM

Koburn,

Keep me covered, I'm reloading! :scrutiny:

Rusty

carp killer

July 12, 2003, 11:52 AM

"By any measure the United States is the most armed country in the world," it said. "With roughly 83 to 96 guns per 100 people, the United States is approaching a statistical level of one gun per person."

That's impossible, guns are like potato chips, you can't have just one.:neener:

Tamara

July 12, 2003, 12:41 PM

The United States has by far the largest number of publicly owned firearms in the world and is approaching the point where there is one gun for every American, according to the Small Arms Survey 2003 released Tuesday.

I don't have any "publicly" owned guns, although there are some down at the local guard armory, and I saw a police officer carrying one today. ;)

I'm doing my share for the privately-owned average, however; I figure I'm carrying about sixty-something slackers who are refusing to do their share. :D

cracked butt

July 13, 2003, 03:17 AM

Jeez only about 1 gun for every American?:scrutiny: I'm depriving a few dozen Americans of their 1 firearm. Ah, well more for me:neener:

Glamdring

July 13, 2003, 11:04 AM

Just think if Tamara moved to another country they would have to do the whole count over again for that country :D

She could probably double the count for some countries :scrutiny:

BryanP

July 13, 2003, 06:35 PM

169,000,000 million each DAY???
That would be 33,800 rounds for each person in the WORLD each day.
Think those numbers need some going over again!

I suspect he was trying to say 169,000,000 per day, not 169,000,000,000,000 per day which is what "169,000,000 million" would come out to. The former works out to a much more believable per-person figure.

And as for the count, do we count pets, too? I just put a nice 6" .357 stainless revolver on layaway yesterday. Once I get that I'll have one firearm each for me, the wife, the multitude of cats and Bob The Big Dumb Dog. :D

The bad part is that my dog is an anti. He's a rescued stray and all I can tell you is that he's terrified of guns. If he sees me carrying one he puts his tail between his legs and leaves the room. Oh, the shame of it all!

If you enjoyed reading about "Nearly 1 Gun for Every American" here in TheHighRoad.org archive, you'll LOVE our community. Come join TheHighRoad.org today for the full version!